Of Loneliness, Hornets, and Tattoos
by Juble
Summary: Starrk goes to chill in the Human World, and Soi Fon chooses Kira and Hisagi to go with her and hunt him down.
1. Chapter 1

The Primera Espada, Coyote Starrk, stepped out of the Garganta and onto the bright green grass offered by the human world. The Garganta slowly closed behind him, sealing away the path to the dark Hollow world he just left behind. He silently gazed around at his exit point, partially surprised at how relaxed everyone was, completely oblivious of the fact that if he wanted to, Starrk could kill every person at the park he was in.

_If_ he wanted to. Killing in general was something he didn't care too much for. His spiritual pressure had killed more than anyone should kill in any two lifetimes. He had, however, learned to control his vast amount of power he held.

So long as none of the humans in the park he was in were spiritually aware, no one would be subconsciously injured.

The Primera walked across the park, silently moving while people ran about around him, unaware of his presence. No one else came to the human world with him. He had left Lilynette at Las Noches, and it wasn't like anyone else would have come with him in the first place. He let out a sigh, a mixture of boredom and conflicting emotions, and sat down on a wooden bench. Two kids chasing each other ran right by him, laughing without a worry in the world.

This park was a spot Starrk had visited before. It was a happy place, always full of family and friends enjoying everyone's company. He couldn't understand it, but every time Starrk took his leave from Las Noches, he was drawn to this particular park. He looked out, examining the fountain at the center of the city escape. It was a simple fountain, but its constant flow of water gave a comforting hum to the atmosphere.

Aside from the fountain, there were some swing sets, a set of monkey bars, a slide, and those animals that sat on the big springs.

Starrk leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees and letting his gloved hands droop. For one moment, he started to brood on several thoughts, each requiring more work than he wanted to put forth. He let out another sigh, this one of frustration, and put his back against the bench. He put his arms up on the top of the bench, and looked up at the sky. The bright blue, cloudy sky returned his stare. The clouds silently rolled along, the blue backdrop maintaining its ever-lasting image.

It reminded Starrk of Las Noches. The artificial sky Aizen provided was a perfect replica of the human world sky.

And Starrk was a little tired of it.

"Hey!"

A voice interrupted his tired thoughts. He knew no one could possibly be talking to him. He was perfectly masking his presence to keep any Shinigami from causing much unwanted trouble, and no human should be able to see him. He shut his eyes, and-

"Hey!"

Starrk glanced down; now feeling like someone was attempting to get his attention.

A woman, seemingly in her twenties, was standing in the park, trying to get the attention of a couple having a picnic under a tree. She had blonde hair, put back in a thick pony tail that came down to her shoulder blades. She had a black hoodie on, and a generic pair of blue wind breakers. She had her back to where Starrk was, and he could automatically tell something wasn't normal.

The couple didn't react at all, and kept their conversation going like no one was yelling at them.

The girl yelled a little bit more, and finally let her shoulders fall in defeat. She turned around, facing Starrk, and he immediately understood the situation. A broken chain hung from her chest, revealing her as one of the deceased. She probably didn't understand that she had passed.

She looked at the ground and walked over to the bench Starrk was sitting on, and sat down next to him, completely unaware of the fact he was a soul-eating monster with a human form. Starrk's taste for humans faded when he turned into an Arrancar, so he was completely unfazed by the plus sitting next to him.

Starrk didn't look at her as or after she sat down, already having returned his gaze to the blue sky. It was only a little after noon, so he figured a little nap wouldn't hurt. He had the uncanny ability to sleep nearly anywhere, so he allowed his eyes to slowly close and blot out the bright sky.

"Can you hear me?"

Her voice was soft, and obviously scared. He kept his eyes closed, preferring to stay clear of the awkwardness of the truth. He knew one of three fates awaited her: soul burial from a Shinigami, devoured by a Hollow, or becoming a Hollow.

"Well, if you can't, that's okay. I just thought you might because you looked a little . . . strange."

Starrk ignored the comment. He knew to a human he was abnormal. The hollow hole in his chest and his zanpakuto, coupled with his mask remains around his neck would give off an odd appearance to anyone unaware of what he truly was. She probably assumed he was just a cosplayer who got lost on his way to a convention.

He heard her let out a sigh, and assumed her head drooped to the grass. Her saddened atmosphere made it hard for Starrk to concentrate on his nap, and pretty much ruined his mood.

The Primera silently rose from his seat, and left the plus where she was, never passing her a glance. He never knew how to react with people, let alone telling someone they were dead. He chose to keep his distance, holding a somewhat childish fear of strangers.

He began making his way into the city, hoping a spot to find a nap would soon reveal itself.

Hisagi Shuhei sat in the 9th Division office, finally with some time to spare. He found that a Captain's work just kept building, and never really came to a halt. He plucked another string on his guitar, unsure if it was in tune or not. He listened to the vibrating string slowly come to a halt, and decided it was as close as he could get it without assistance from either a tuner or Sado.

He rechecked his tabs, satisfied his hand-written music was acceptable enough for a bit of a practice session, and began to let his fingers move across the instrument. He had been slowly improving with each session, and his fingers could now gracefully slide across the strings. The music that flooded out was comforting to him. It wasn't too energetic, but far from a rhythm and blues tune as well. He had most of the sheet music memorized, and could almost play it all by memory, though he would occasionally miss a note here and there.

The lieutenant was preparing to restart his set list when a Hell Butterfly made its way into his office. He silently extended a hand from his guitar, and the black insect softly landed on his palm.

Message: 9th Division Lieutenant Hisagi Shuhei. You are to report to Sokyoku Hill in exactly ten minutes. Finish all current work and be prepared for a new assignment in the human world.

The insect silently left, having fulfilled its current objective. Hisagi sighed, realizing that no matter how much he would want it, he would never get a true day off.

He reached up the neck of his guitar, and began to carefully tighten a string he decided was out of tune. He felt the information from the Hell Butterfly was lacking, which probably meant there wasn't much known just yet. The lieutenant knew it probably had something to do with the Arrancar threat, though was unsure to what extent. He began to ponder on the particular group of hollow, but his thoughts were interrupted by the snapped guitar string flying back into his face.

Hisagi walked up the last few steps of the hill, and was partially surprised that only two other people were there to greet him- Lieutenant of the 3rd Division, Kira Izuru, and Captain of the 2nd Division, Soi Fon.

"Hisagi," Kira began as the tattooed Soul Reaper approached the small group. "Welcome."

"Hey there, Kira." Hisagi replied with a smile and a brief wave. He got to the group, and gave a polite bow to Soi Fon.

"Good after noon, Captain Soi Fon."

"At ease," she coldly responded.

Hisagi relaxed, but couldn't be "at ease" around the Captain of the assassins of Soul Society. He never really spoke with her, let alone was in the same room for more than a few seconds, so was uncertain with how to act around her. It made him uncomfortable to have someone like her as their acting leader, and he was sure Kira felt the same.

"Have you been briefed?" Soi Fon asked.

"No, Captain."

"I'll brief you on the way," she told him as she walked past both Hisagi and Kira. Though the Captain came only to Hisagi's shoulders, he felt like she was looking down on him from some metaphoric pedestal.

Hisagi glanced at Kira with a look of concern. Kira simply replied with a shrug. The two lieutenants quietly followed the Captain as she walked to the gate that led to the Human World. Right on time, three Hell Butterflies arrived to escort them safely to the other side.

"Do keep up," Soi Fon began as she walked into the light the gate gave off, "or I won't be able to explain everything before we get there."

As soon as she stepped through the gate, she took off in what seemed like a sprint, though the lieutenants knew it was but a jog for the Captain of the 2nd Division. Kira and Hisagi ran off after her, soon getting next to her and keeping pace. Once caught up, Soi Fon began to speak to the lieutenants.

"We are going to a town just outside of Karakura."

That town's name was now known throughout the upper ranks of Soul Society. Supposedly in the winter, Aizen's army of Arrancar were to arrive there, and Captain Hitsugaya and a few others were sent there in the mean time. Enemy movement around the town was not a surprise to Hisagi.

"Apparently, an Arrancar was seen there by the Shinigami of that town. He naturally didn't engage, and quickly informed the higher ups. Yamamoto wanted to keep the Captain's in the Soul Society, so I was ordered to take two lieutenants I deemed fit to go with me to investigate, and if found, assassinate this Arrancar."

Hisagi felt a small pang of fear stretch through him, a usual habit of going into battle held by the lieutenant. He was, however, somewhat anxious to meet the enemy that threatened Soul Society. The thought made his heart rate increase slightly, but he relaxed himself, another habit gained through years of going into battle. They silently ran a few steps, awkward silence now filling the air.

"May I ask you something, Captain?" Hisagi asked, unsure of what the woman's reaction was going to be, but relieved to break the silence.

"Make it quick."

"Why did you choose us?"

Soi Fon stayed quiet a moment, then opened her mouth. "My lieutenant is a waste of space, and you two are well rounded in all fields of a Shinigami."

She gestured to the blonde Shinigami to her left. "Kira was in the 4th Division at one point, which naturally made him a wise choice for a battlefield situation. You excel in offensive Kido, and are one of the most well-rounded lieutenants."

Hisagi felt a little proud that he was being praised by someone like Soi Fon, but knew what she was saying wasn't a complement. It was only what statistics on the reports said.

"Now may I ask you something, Lieutenant?" Soi Fon asked in a flat tone.

The gesture took Hisagi by surprise, though his pace didn't slow. "Of course, Captain."

"Why do you have a fresh wound on your face?"

Hisagi slightly blushed, recalling his own mistake of tightening a guitar string too much, and wanted to avoid the question.

"Uhh, well-" he wanted to keep the image Soi Fon held of him, so he was looking for a good answer.

"Get ready," Soi Fon interrupted.

Hisagi looked ahead to see the Human World at the end of the path. He prepared himself, and together with Kira and Soi Fon, ran through the light into the human world.


	2. Chapter 2

Starrk politely waited with a crowd of living people at a crosswalk, watching the cars speed by. He looked at the people, taking in the atmosphere they held. To his immediate left was a woman chatting away on a cell phone to whom Starrk presumed was her boyfriend. The bright jewelry on both her ears and fingers shown brightly from the sun that hung directly overhead the crowd. There were two kids, probably in elementary school, at the front of the pack who seemed to be unable to stand still. One kept poking the other, causing the other to naturally poke back. A teenager stood just in front of Starrk, chewing a piece of gum and listening to his MP3 player. His lean figure was shown more by his baggy clothing, a fad Starrk didn't quite grasp completely.

The Primera envied every one of them.

The light on the crosswalk suddenly clicked to green, and after a healthy amount of wasted time passed by, Starrk stepped through the crowd of people and crossed the street. He found it odd that while the cars couldn't harm him in any way, he continued to act like one of the living at public locations like these, and wait for the appropriate time to cross.

Once on the other side, he continued to move down the sidewalk, absorbing the environment. The city was huge, with tall buildings all around. In fact, the only place that wasn't concrete covered was the near by river, and the park Starrk had just left.

Bright lights greeted the Primera as he walked around sight-seeing. His voyage to find a place to sleep seemed to be a bit of a challenge in a cramped city. As cars kept passing him by, he found himself glancing curiously into the windows of each passing vehicle.

One vehicle was driven by an older man in a suit, most likely in a hurry to get somewhere, as Starrk's eyes caught that he was on a cell phone _and _working on putting a tie on. The next car held a couple, both laughing at some joke Starrk would never hear.

The Arrancar turned from the street, and continued down the crowded path he was on. He took a corner, passed by some kids who were in a bigger hurry than anyone should ever be in, and found a possible haven for a nap. A large shopping mall showed itself down the long road he was facing.

The building was massive, surrounded by an extensive parking lot. The mall was dome-shaped, and had glass windows on various locations, each containing its own store. People were shuffling between sidewalks, the doors, and their cars, the noise somehow not as loud as the rest of the city.

Starrk calmly made his way to the large double doors that led into the shopping center. A group of four people walked out of the automatic doors, all in a heated conversation Starrk didn't care to know of. He paused as the doors slowly closed themselves, staring at his reflection in the glass. No one else shared his presence in that reflection.

Another couple walked out, opening the doors again, splitting the vision of himself in half before destroying it completely. He let himself in, removing his presence from the outside world.

The mall was as expected. Full of people, benches, stores, and food stands. The tile floors all looked the same, a repeating pattern flowing throughout the entire mall. Starrk took several steps in, passing by a large assortment of people. He even passed a little girl who seemed to be able to see him, but the Primera called it off as just a fluke. He didn't want to know if he could be seen or not. That would just mean he would know yet another person's fate would be at the hands of some starving Hollow looking for someone with a trace of spiritual energy.

The thought reminded him of the Plus at the park. He knew she would probably be a Hollow's meal by the end of the day, unless a Shinigami rescued her from that fate.

He stopped himself from dwelling on someone else's problems, and walked on, continuing his quest for an appropriate spot to nap.

Maria Tsukiumi looked down at the green grass at her feet. She moved her blue eyes up to her black shoes, then up to her pants. They had a stain on the left knee that always bothered her, but she ignored it. She put her back against the bench she was on, and looked down at her chest. The broken chain still hung their, unmoving.

She brushed a stray lock of her blonde hair out of her face, and took her eyes away from the chain. She knew she had died.

She even remembered how. Being half Japanese and half American, and her parents living in America, she naturally spent most of her life in the U.S. She only went to Japan every autumn to visit her family. This time however, she knew she wouldn't be going home. She wasn't even sure if her family knew yet.

Maria got lost in the city, out alone in Japan for the first and last time in her life. Reflecting on the memory of death hurt a little, but she found it comforting in its own way to admit what had happened. She walked through her last steps in her head.

The blonde was crossing a street late last night. Not a lot of people were outside that night, and she was in a hurry to get . . . Where? She couldn't quite remember that part.

She was crossing the road, on the phone with her boyfriend back in the States, when she suddenly found herself in the air, flipping over sideways across the car that struck her. She lived, or had simply retained consciousness long enough, to see the car speed away after hitting her. The next thing she remembered was waking up today on the sidewalk, confused as to what was going on. No one could see or hear her, and she couldn't find a sign of her body.

The Plus decided that an ambulance had picked up her body, that being a more comforting thought than the car coming back and stashing the corpse somewhere, but having already died, her soul stayed at where it last was connected with its body.

She had been wandering around since, looking for someone to help her. She couldn't find her family, couldn't talk to her boyfriend, and knew no one in Japan that wasn't a relative. She was alone, lost, and afraid. She wondered if this was what happened to everyone once they died. There was no one waiting for her once she passed, and the thought of being alone in her own world forever truly horrified her.

She looked around at the park, still on the bench the Primera left her on.

Everyone seemed so carefree. She smiled to herself at how blissful everything was, and decided she had spent enough time brooding. She stood from the bench, and stretched a little, giving out a little squeal. Maria knew she was too stubborn to do nothing. She looked up at the sky, the sun seeming brighter now.

The Plus wasn't quite sure what she was supposed to do, but she knew there was _something_ she could do. She just had to find it first. The blonde began walking away from the park, though as to where yet, she didn't know.

Hisagi Shuhei looked out at the city. He was on top of one of the many skyscrapers, looking down at the busy streets. Cars and people blended together when one stood as high up as he, so it all just looked like a mesh of colors clogging up a drain to the lieutenant. Soi Fon had left them behind to cover one half of the city, while she checked the other half.

Hisagi closed his eyes, and concentrated on trying to find a trace of spiritual energy. He found Kira's first, as he was right next to him on one knee at the corner of the roof.

"Hey," Kira interrupted Hisagi's attempt at finding their goal. "Does Captain Soi Fon . . . scare you?"

This threw Hisagi completely off track. He had noticed Kira was keeping to himself more than normal, but he wasn't expecting Soi Fon to be the reason why. He almost felt like he was going to fall over from the randomness of the particular question.

Kira sadly looked down at the people on the streets. "I'm not kidding."

Hisagi looked out at the horizon line, pondering on it for a second. "Well, in a way, I guess she does." He scratched his head with one finger. "I mean, she is the leader of the Onmitsukido, and a Captain in the Thirteen Court Guard Squads."

The blonde soul reaper hid his face slightly from Hisagi.

"How come?"

Kira looked over to Hisagi, a look of terror on his face. "She is an incredibly threatening person."

Kira recalled his first conversation with the Captain of the Second Squad.

_Izuru Kira approached the entrance to the Second Division's quarters, the area the Hell Butterfly sent to him said to head to, to prepare for the mission. He politely made his way to the area the Second Squad members told him to go. The only one from the Second Squad Kira ever really talked to from that squad was Omaeda, and he wasn't the greatest of individuals, so he was somewhat surprised at how polite everyone in the squad was. _

_He opened the sliding door he arrived at, and came face to face with one of the most terrifying sights he had ever seen. _

_Captain Soi Fon was on her knees, her back to Kira, playing with something he couldn't quite see. Kira stayed quiet, shocked at the sight. Soi Fon suddenly held up a large stuffed black cat, making a flying noise of some sort. _

"_Woah," Kira said out of amazement. _

_Soi Fon heard this, and quickly looked over her shoulder at the lieutenant with a surprised expression on her red face. They stared at one another, both held still in awkward shock. _

"_Get out!" Soi Fon raged. She suddenly appeared in front of Kira, a movement so fast the lieutenant couldn't follow it, and slammed the door shut. Kira stood there, his face going pale. _

_Several of the Second Squad members carefully made their way past Kira, who simply stood there, unsure of how safe he really was. _

_Suddenly Soi Fon came through the door, looking rather upset with the lieutenant, though embarrassed at the same time. Kira knew if it had been anyone but the Captain of the Onmitsukido, it would have been kind of cute. _

"_It would be a shame if something happened to you in the real world, wouldn't it, Lieutenant of Squad Three?" _

_Kira's shoulders slumped and his lips hung open, unsure of how to reply. Apparently, silence was the right answer. _

"_I'm assuming you've been briefed by my Hell Butterfly."_

_Kira nervously nodded his head. _

"_Send one to the Lieutenant of the Ninth Division," Soi Fon began as she started to walk away from Kira. "Just tell him to get to Sokyoku Hill; I'll brief him on the way."_

_Kira watched in silence as the woman walked away from him._

Hisagi looked down at Kira, his black Shihakusho standing out against the white concrete roof they were on. He wondered if Kira was going to explain why he thought Soi Fon was terrifying, but let it go. He probably didn't want to know.

Kira shuddered suddenly, and Hisagi found his brooding to grow annoying. Hisagi decided to try and locate the Arrancar's spiritual energy, and again closed his eyes and focused on his goal. He sensed Kira's again, and moved is boundaries out. He could feel Soi Fon's, though she was so far from them in such a short time it shocked the lieutenant.

The sound of two phones ringing disturbed his concentration.

Hisagi and Kira both checked their cell phones, a message flashing on the screen that meant only one thing: a Hollow had arrived.


	3. Chapter 3

Itou Takeshi sprinted through the door to his apartment, nearly falling over the doormat in his house. In a panic, he slammed the door behind him, and locked the deadbolt tight. The businessman took a few deep breaths, attempting to calm himself of what he just saw. The pale man slid his back down the door, eventually falling to the floor. He was exhausted. Itou had never ran that far since high school. But then again, he hadn't seen something like _that_ since he has been alive, either.

He thought back, attempting to make some sense of the situation. He ran a hand through his plain brown hair, a habit developed at his work. It was faint, but he could hear the sound of heavy footsteps approaching outside of the door. He felt a rush of fear crawl down his spine. His breathing increased along with his heart rate, which soon lead to a cold sweat forming as the footsteps drew closer. They thankfully sounded distant, but were moving at an odd interval. It almost sounded like there were two sets of feet moving.

The businessman wasn't sure what was chasing him, and he knew it was invisible, but he could hear it a little too clearly. The cry echoed through his home, rattling both the windows and his head. It felt like his teeth were being slammed together, though that may have been because of his chattering teeth rather than the scream. It was high-pitched and shrill, but had a very dark undertone to it. The war cry reverberated down his spine, to the pits of his soul, and literally froze him in place. The scream continued, seemingly for an eternity. He sat there, staring into nothing as the noise stretched on, his thoughts now blank. The cry suddenly stopped.

Itou held his breath, his heart stomping in his chest. Everything seemed to stand still to him. He began to count his heartbeats subconsciously. One. Two. Three.

Suddenly a large metal trashcan came flying through his window, which was mere feet from the distressed man. The curtains blew inward, glass flying into the house, scattering all over the clean, red carpet. The sudden movement startled Itou, and he naturally pulled away from the window. He leaned away from the broken pane, his back now against the wall rather than the door. The spot he was previously at suddenly exploded inward, as if something on the outside blew a hole into it. Wooden shrapnel fell to the floor, and Itou looked into the gaping hole in his door. He saw nothing, but heard a cry from whatever was assaulting him. Whatever it was, it was at his door.

He rose from his position, and attempted to flee from his attacker. He looked at the room he was in, looking for a way out. His living room was small, having only a coffee table and a loveseat positioned in front of a television. But, it had three doors, one that lead outside, which was currently blocked by some invisible behemoth, one to a bathroom, and one to his kitchen, which held two more doors.

His mind raced as he took his first step toward the kitchen. He slipped on a large chunk of his broken door upon stepping down, and began to fall face-first to the carpet. He managed to catch himself however, before actually hitting the floor. His left hand landed on a shard of the broken window though, causing a sticky red substance to spill out onto his floor. He stood as quickly as he could, and pulled the shard of glass from his hand. The pain would have been terrible, but his fear was far stronger at the moment.

He watched the bloody shard fall to the ground, and looked out to his escape route. It seemed all clear.

The businessman took a deep breath, preparing for the next sprint he had to take. However, to his surprise, his path was suddenly blocked by his coffee table. The wooden table slowly rose from the ground, and silently floated over to impede the doorway to the kitchen.

Itou was again frozen, this time in disbelief. Was the invisible monster in his house?

He turned to the door, which suddenly had what looked like a hand print on it, as if the beast outside reached through the hole and grabbed the inside of the door. The monster wasn't inside the apartment, that much he knew.

He looked back at the floating table, unsure of what to do next. Without hesitation, the table took off, flying directly at Itou.

Though slightly aged, the ex-soccer player held on to his old agility, and managed to dive out of the way of the projectile. He landed hard on his stomach, but turned and watched as the table flew toward the door, missing its intended target.

The cheap table suddenly stopped just before hitting the door, and quietly set itself down on all four legs.

A bark came from the door, and Itou decided he didn't want to stay to figure out what the hell just happened.

He stood up yet again and raced off to the kitchen. He heard what sounded like a grenade going off as he approached the doorway, assuming the beast had broken through either the door or the wall. Either way, he wasn't sticking around to assess the damage. He ran into the kitchen, finally completing his first objective on his path of escape.

As he entered, he looked over his bar and saw his next objective: the back door. He didn't hesitate, and kept his pace through his kitchen, the largest room in his home. Without warning, one of his two barstools suddenly arced off the floor and flew right at him.

Itou quickly dove to his left, but this time he wasn't quick enough. The stool clipped him in the right shoulder, and caused the businessman to spin and fall to the floor. His vision blurred from the force, and he couldn't remember actually hitting the ground. But nonetheless, he was on his back, looking up at the white ceiling.

He shook off the dizziness, and attempted to rise again. His brown business suit was now tattered and sweaty, the left sleeve a bit bloody. He slumped against the wall, now standing, and realized he couldn't feel his right arm. He took a glance at it, and saw it was limp. He wasn't sure, but he was confident it was broken.

The pain managed to catch up to him this time, and he could feel his energy decline with each heavy breath he took. The doorway suddenly seemed to be yards away, each tile on the floor stretching out. His vision pulsed between clear and fuzzy, and he began to have trouble focusing.

The sound of footsteps caught his attention, and he suddenly had another jolt of energy. He took two clumsy steps toward the door, and fell to the ground. He rolled over to his back, now losing all hope of escape.

Itou looked at the doorway he had come through, unsure of what to expect. He could hear it breathing, could feel it staring at him, but could not see it. Whatever it was though, it had won.

The tired soul tried to drag himself away from the door, but couldn't muster the strength.

His left hand wouldn't stop bleeding, and his right arm wouldn't start to feel.

The drawers in his kitchen suddenly all flew open simultaneously, surprising the crippled man. Slowly, all of the silverware floated from the drawers, an assortment of forks, spoons, and knives. They all quietly hovered up toward the ceiling. Itou felt his fear reach a peak, now aware of what was going on.

The silverware began to turn down toward the fallen man, slowly, deliberately. Itou tried to scream, but he couldn't muster the strength. All he could manage to do was watch as the cutlery rained down on him.

Soi Fon stood atop the tallest building in the city, looking down on the various sights scattered below. Her cell phone kept insistently ringing, alerting the Captain of a hollow. She ignored the noise, attempting to focus on searching for spiritual pressure.

After all, she had come to the human world for an Arrancar, not some lowly hollow.

Her annoyance with the ringing finally took its toll, and she took out her phone. She flipped it open to examine the screen, and noticed the glowing red dot on the screen was flickering, signaling that the fallen soul was near by. She quickly told the machine to shut the hell up.

A Captain has no reason to deal with some basic hollow. She was confident either the guardian of the town or the two lieutenants would handle it before it did any harm. She looked out into the sky, the clouds slowly rolling out of the way of the bright sun.

She had been standing on the sky scraper since she had arrived, attempting to locate the Arrancar by looking for its spiritual pressure. Unfortunately, the creature was either gone, or had an uncanny ability to perfectly mask its presence.

To be safe, the Captain assumed it was the second, and smiled to herself at the thought of her mission. This would be a true hunt, with a true assassination.

Without hesitation, Soi Fon leapt from the top of the building, deciding it wise to begin actually looking for the Arrancar.


	4. Chapter 4

Soi Fon fell from the sky scraper in a dive, staring at her reflection in the passing windows as she approached the concrete roads below. Her hair and haori were flailing with the decent. The rush of wind felt good on her face, and she closed her eyes in response, her straight bangs parting with the wind. The rush of wind had always been a nostalgic feeling to her.

She decided to try finding the Arrancar's spiritual pressure, just one more time.

Both Hisagi and Kira's spiritual pressure were immediately recognized. The two of them were on the move, though Soi Fon wasn't positive where they were going. The spiritual pressure of the Hollow who had just arrived was shortly located as well. It was stationary, which meant it had probably just found some prey, or had already started eating.

She focused harder, going to the point of straining her face in the process.

Nothing.

Angry with herself for failing to find it, she opened her eyes and faced the ground under her, looking for a spot to land. She couldn't land on the sidewalk by the road, as there were far too many people recklessly cluttered on the concrete walkway.

She pulled her body up from the diving position, and placed her feet on the side of the building. She began sliding down the building, leaving a small trail of dust in her wake. When she was a few feet from the crowd on the ground, she pushed off the building, soaring across the busy road. She landed on top of a street light, and silently leapt to another one, paying close attention to the citizens around the city.

Her highly trained eyes caught every detail in a mere glimpse. Though she had never seen one, she knew Arrancar had a fragment of a hollow mask somewhere on their body, and that was sure to stand out in a crowd.

She began speedily leaping through the city, scanning the many faces of the citizens. She wasn't sure how Arrancar thought, but she knew how Hollow did, and an Arrancar _is_ a type of Hollow. She knew Hollow went to places full of spiritual pressure, which usually means places full of people.

The Captain trekked through the city, heading to the three places she saw from the top of the sky scraper: a park, a construction site, and a mall.

The park was the closest to her location, so she decided to head there first. She gracefully fell from her next street light onto the road under her, landing on the top of a moving car. She propelled herself from the vehicle onto the one in front of it, easily surpassing the speed of the machines. The Captain began using the vehicles on the road as stepping stones, casually leaping from one to the next until she reached her destination.

The park was quiet, despite having quite a few people in it. The park was fairly bland, the fountain at the center of the park being the only thing that stood out to Soi Fon. She silently walked through, making sure to avoid any kids. She hated kids.

She looked out at the simple city escape, examining the slide, monkey bars, and other equipment usually used by children. She walked through the grass, realizing that the park was the only green spot in the city that she saw from her elevated position earlier.

Soi Fon quietly passed by a couple under a tree, both silently staring at one another, and noticed a few people gathered around the fountain, all laughing at some unheard remark. She ignored the living tossing coins in the water, and quietly stepped past a lone park bench.

Past the bench was a large field of grass, surrounded by a semi-circle of trees. It took her a moment to realize it, but the scenery reminded her of her personal training grounds back in Soul Society. The way the trees were lined around the grass opening was disturbingly similar.

Flashbacks often haunted the Captain of the Second Division, but the human-world replica of her training grounds triggered one that was much more vivid than usual. Standing in the moon light, the trees in full bloom, with _her_. The entire night played through her head in an instant, from the time _she_ arrived to "help," to the time _she_ left.

Soi Fon despised herself for the mere thought of _her_. She hated herself for feeling how she did, but had come to admit that she was too weak to ignore those feelings. She hated _her_, could never forgive _her_, yet loved _her_, and always forgave _her_. Her fists clinched tighter with each thought.

The continual thoughts of her foolishness flooded into her mind, causing her rage to build. Soon, she could feel her teeth grinding and her eyes beginning to swell.

But she controlled herself. Being an assassin nearly from birth, she had learned to leave sentimental issues behind her until her mission was complete. And as of now, her mission remained unfinished.

Pulling herself from her thoughts and focusing only on the task at hand, she leapt into the air, and looked down at the park. Even from the elevated position, it was still just a quiet, friendly, boring park. Not even a sign of the dead, let alone an Arrancar.

Slightly frustrated, she continued her hunt. She stayed in the air this time, surveying the ground below, making sure to avoid the portion of the park that reminded the Captain of _her_. She leapt into the city again, and began heading to her next destination: the construction site.

As Starrk passed from the busy halls of the mall into his destination, he met eyes again with his reflection in the glass doors in front of him. They parted as a couple walked out, and Starrk silently stepped into the furniture store.

The store was much warmer than the cold halls of the mall, which Starrk found pleasant. The room that greeted him had a dark brown carpet, decorated with many house hold accessories, ranging from love seats to king sized beds.

He began to walk through the store, passing many objects which seemed perfect for his goal. But he pressed on. The Primera wanted a location where not many customers traveled to. Through past experience, he had found that the living like to test out their furniture, and Starrk didn't want to be interrupted during his leisure time.

The Arrancar passed by a few people, but overall found the store to be relatively vacant. The chatter of the people blended with the soothingly generic, elevator-like music playing throughout the store. Starrk could actually hear his thoughts in this portion of the mall. He almost wished he couldn't.

In the back of the store, in a poorly lit area, was his destination. A single queen sized bed lay on its frame, held a foot over the carpet. The sheets were tucked in nicely, and the comforter lay open in a fashion that beckoned for the Primera to enter. The comforter matched the carpet, and overall appeared extremely generic. Perfect.

He sat himself down on the bed, which sank in and creaked with the Primera's weight. He couldn't cover up, as that would look a bit odd to anyone who couldn't see spirits, but that didn't stop the Arrancar from laying on top of the soft comforter. He laid his head back on the only pillow, which was oddly comfortable for a generic one, and stared up at the ceiling.

The ceiling was several shades lighter than the carpet, but was a continuing pattern of tiles, just like the floor outside of the store. The lights from the ceiling shined just a little dimmer than the average light, giving the store a cozier feeling. Starrk was thankful for that.

He placed his left arm over his eyes, deciding the warmth of the store was a better sleep aid than the lights. Though physically comfortable, his mind was far from. As usual, his thoughts drifted to the most random of places.

He wondered what Lilynette was doing, since he had left without saying anything to her. He wondered how Hallibel was, as he hadn't even seen her today. He wondered what the plus he had seen at the park was doing. He wondered if the little girl he thought saw him, actually saw him. He wondered why there were three Shinigami in the town. He wondered why he continued to think when attempting to sleep. He wondered if he would wake up in time to see it. He wondered . . .

Nothing. No matter how many thoughts jump around in the Primera's head, once he gets comfortable, he is out.

He laid in the bed, snoring softly to himself. He never moved much when asleep, so the several people who passed by the bed he was on had no idea that an entity that could destroy just about everything was dreaming right next to them.

Soi Fon looked out at the construction site, disappointed that nothing out of the ordinary was there to greet her. She stepped out silently onto the road, which was not traveled on by many due to the construction. She turned around and faced the giant steel skeleton towering over her, and glanced away. It amazed her how the living created these towering buildings at such phenomenal speeds.

She stepped out onto the road, beginning to cross the street. No sign of traffic, not that a soul such as herself could be harmed by anything not having spiritual pressure. Her mind was now fully bent around her last area to search. She stopped in the road and pondered to herself what she was going to do if the Arrancar wasn't at the shopping center.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a deep meow.

The head of the Onmitsukido's heart skipped a beat. She could feel her stomach lighten, and her eyes spread with slight surprise. She looked nervously around, unsure of what to do. She could feel her face burning slightly.

On the sidewalk across from her, was a lone black cat.

Stunned, the Captain took a single step toward the feline, a shocked expression. She called out to it. "Yoru-"

That was when she noticed the eyes. Instead of the deep gold eyes she was expecting, she found the dull green eyes of a regular cat.

It meowed at her again, as if confirming it wasn't _her_.

Soi Fon quickly looked away from the animal, still blushing. She couldn't believe she let herself get carried away over something so-

Something brushed up against her leg, causing the Captain to slightly jump from the surprise. She glanced down, and met the same green eyes she had just avoided. The creature meowed at her again.

Soi Fon couldn't believe that she was caught off-guard by something like a cat. She was tempted to kick the beast, but held that back. She blamed herself for thinking of _her_.

Unsure of what to do next, she stared down at the cat. It stared back, unblinking. Soi Fon reached a hesitant hand down toward the cat's head. The cat didn't flinch, its green eyes staring solidly into her own.

The cat, other than the eyes, really did look a lot like _her_. Though disgusted with the thought, she couldn't help herself. She continued to let her hand glide over to the top of the animal's head. Her hand was almost touching its head. Almost-

The sudden sound from the horn of a car caused the Captain to again jump in surprise.

In a panic, she looked over, realizing she was standing in the middle of the road. A yellow sports car came speeding down the road, blaring its horn. She spun backwards, barely avoiding the speeding car. She placed a hand to her chest, breathing deeply from the scare.

She childishly looked around to see if anyone saw what had just transpired. She saw no one along the sidewalks outside the construction site.

She scolded herself yet again. That's twice she let herself go unguarded because of _her_. She wasn't sure why she even got out of the way. Being a soul, the vehicle would have just flown through her. Just more embarrassment for Soi Fon.

The Captain suddenly remembered the cat. That must have been why they were holding down the horn.

She looked down to where the cat was, yet was met with only tire burns.

She glanced over to where the car was heading, and saw it stopped in the middle of the road, several yards away from her, two sets of black tire tracks leading to the car.

A blonde man got out of the car's driver side door, and looked to the front of the car.

"Did we hit it?" He asked the passenger.

Soi Fon's heart sank at the thought of the black cat getting smashed by a speeding car.

She turned away from the car, unwilling to know the answer. She patted her face twice, attempting to calm herself down. She couldn't let herself slip a third time.

With her mind focused again on the mission, she took to the air and began heading to her last destination: the mall.


	5. Chapter 5

Hisagi Shuhei walked through the massive parking lot, looking at the vast sea of cars, trucks, and vans. People shifted in and out of vehicles and the large building at the center of the giant concrete circle, unknowingly passing by essentially a pair Grim Reapers.

Hisagi looked behind him, and met eyes with Kira, who was only a few feet behind him, his head slowly shifting around gazing at the scenery.

"You sure we should go in and look?" Kira thoughtfully asked. "I mean, that other hollow is still running around, and I can't seem to locate this towns Shinigami."

Hisagi had been thinking the same thing, but they had orders to hunt down the Arrancar, not the minor hollow.

"I know it's going to be on your mind, but try to ignore it," Hisagi replied while keeping his pace. "The Arrancar could cause a lot more harm, so that's got to be our top priority right now."

"Yeah, you're right."

The pair stopped in front of the glass double doors that led into the mall. Hisagi stared into his reflection and couldn't help but slightly grin at the figure that grinned back. He wouldn't admit it without a few drinks in him, but the Lieutenant was very proud of the way he looked. He felt his tattoos symbolized his singularity, and he felt his customized look helped make him who he was.

His prideful inner thoughts were interrupted as the double doors quietly split open, allowing a mother and her young daughter to exit the mall.

"But mommy, I'm not lying to you! There was a man in white inside! He had a spikey necklace and everything!"

"Will you stop lying, dear. It's not nice to make up stories." The mother politely scolded her child from under her large sun hat.

The young girl glanced at Hisagi and Kira, her large brown eyes wide with surprise. Her two pigtails seemed to arc down as she looked up at the Lieutenants.

"Look, mommy! There are two more funny people." She pointed directly at the two Lieutenants, her slightly pudgy fingers arcing into a tiny arrow.

The gears in Hisagi's head started to turn upon hearing this minor conversation.

He crouched down and looked the girl in the face; she politely stared back with a slight smile, revealing one of her two front teeth to be missing.

"Hey, mister."

"Hey there," Hisagi replied, trying to sound as polite as possible. "Did you say you saw someone like us inside?"

"Yep! Mommy didn't see him though."

Hisagi quickly began to understand that this girl was spiritually attuned, though her mother wasn't.

"Come on, dear. Quit talking to your imaginary friends."

She pulled on her daughter's hand. But the daughter pulled her hand away, a gruff look on her freckled face. "They're not imaginary!" She stomped one of her tiny feet and gave a chibi growl.

Hisagi couldn't help but smile at the childish argument. "Listen, I just want to know who you saw in the mall. Can you tell us about him?"

She looked back to the Shinigami. "Oh, um, well, he was, uh . . . "

He could tell she was a little nervous, but he kept quiet and tried to look polite.

"He was tall, and had dark hair, and was wearing all white, and had a cool necklace."

Hisagi had heard that Arrancar wore white outfits, and thought that this was too much of a coincidence to not be true. "Can I ask you another question?"

"Oh, yeah, mister."

"Did he have a sword with him?"

"Oh yeah!" She pointed at Hisagi's zanpakuto. "It looked almost exactly like yours."

The Lieutenant knew the Arrancar _had_ to be in the mall. The only question remaining was where exactly in the mall it was.

The child's mother grabbed her hand started to pull her away.

"Aw, I gotta go, misters. Bye, bye!"

Kira waved and silently smiled as Hisagi stood and did the same. Once she was pulled away far enough and she lost interest in the two, the little girl turned around and started walking with her mother.

"Are you thinking what I am?" Hisagi asked Kira.

"I think so." Kira looked up at the large building in front of them. "That Arrancar must be inside."

"Yeah," Hisagi said, embracing the rush of getting closer to his goal, but also feeling the slight hint of fear in his gut he always felt when entering a battle.

"Let's go!"

The two sprinted into the building, unsure of what they were going to find.

Maria waltzed through the mall, feeling somewhat alive again after returning to a familiar atmosphere. Despite being dead, she could still feel things, smell things, and hear things, so the environment was nearly the same for her.

She just couldn't buy anything, or talk to anyone, or do anything except window shop.

But she took it in stride, though, and happily walked around the building, literally going store-to-store, going in several that she would have refused to have been seen in had she been among the living. But now that she was dead, no one was going to see her, so there was no embarrassment to be had now.

She stepped out from a clothing store, and walked over to a near-by pop machine. She stared at it, and found it odd that she hadn't been thirsty or hungry since she had passed. She assumed that since she was dead, it made since she didn't need to eat or drink anything. The plus silently raised a hand up to the machine, and pressed her hand against it.

The machine was cold to the touch.

She sadly smiled to herself. She had found that when she really concentrated on an object, she could interact with it instead of just passing through it. She recalled her first attempt to grab a flower at the park, and her ensuing panic that her hand just quietly phased through the small plant. Maria felt a little more comfort at beginning to understand life as a ghost.

She slowly brought her glaze from the machine down to the chain on her chest. She got a little angry at it, seeing it as further proof she was dead, and gave the tip of it a slight tug. Her chest pulled with it, confirming her thought that it was indeed embedded to her. She gave a sigh of disappointment, and silently turned around from the machine.

What happened next surprised her. It wasn't the increasing amount of people walking around in the shopping center, it wasn't the vast chain of incredible stores, nor was it the fact that she had just began to wonder if the chain would still be there if she took her shirt off.

Maria saw two strange looking men running through the mall, dressed in all black. One had blonde hair that covered one half of his face, the other had short, black ruffled hair, and tattoos on his face. Her first instincts told her they were some kind of yakuza, but the katana they both held at their sides disconfirmed that.

No one, no matter how much influence you have, would be able to carelessly walk around in present-day Japan with a katana on their hip.

That, and no one else was even remotely acknowledging the two peoples existence.

She felt her heart skip a beat for some reason, and quickly understood the slight rush of fear that sunk in.

Were they dead like her?

She took a nervous step back, and the two drew closer, still unaware of her presence.

She took another step, and ran into the pop machine she had been staring at. It startled the plus, and she gave a slight yelp as she did so.

The blonde man stopped a few steps away from her, and looked at her, a bored expression on his face.

Maria looked left, looked right, hoping to find someone else staring back at him.

No one.

She looked back, unsure of what to do.

"Can, can you see me?" She nervously asked. For some reason the man before her didn't completely scare her, though she was a little intimidated.

The second man suddenly appeared next to the blonde one before she could get an answer.

"Why did you stop?" The tattooed one asked.

"Look, Hisagi. It seems we have a lost soul here." He pointed directly at her.

"Huh. Looks like it," he said, positioning himself to face her. "Yeah. Still has the Chain of Fate, as well."

"We better do the Konso quick," the blonde man responded.

"Yeah." The one called "Hisagi" began walking forward, and silently began to unsheathe his katana.

"Now miss, stay still, and don't-"

The Plus Hisagi was walking toward suddenly took off running away from the pair. The sudden flight took Hisagi by surprise, and he felt his jaw slightly fall open.

"You fool!" Kira chastised. "Look, you went and scared her."

"Well, I was getting ready to tell her what was going on, but she just up and left!"

Hisagi felt slightly frustrated that he, a Lieutenant, failed at one of a Soul Reapers most basic duties: to purify souls and send them to the Soul Society.

He turned back, and realized she had disappeared into the crowd of people. He figured she probably ducked into a store somewhere to try and hide.

"Damn it." He sheathed his Zanpakuto. "Come on. We better go find her."

A hellish screech suddenly echoed through the entire mall, stopping both Kira and Hisagi's chain of thought.

The echoing call seemed to rebound off of the walls, and reverberated through the Lieutenants ears. Hisagi looked around. No one in the busy mall seemed to hear a thing.

The screaming slowly began to quiet down, until it soon disappeared completely.

The call was unmistakable. It was the cry of a Hollow, and it was very close by.

Kira was the first to speak up. "We can track her down later. That Hollow is close. We may as well go deal with it."

Hisagi thought about the Arrancar in the shopping center.

"It's just a basic Hollow. It won't take us long," Kira announced, as if understanding exactly what Hisagi was thinking.

Hisagi looked across the mall, and saw the hundreds of people happily skittering about. He prayed they would be quick enough to get back before the Arrancar did anything harmful.

He silently flash stepped away, Kira shortly following suit.

Maria ducked into the furniture store and put her back against some shelves that had stacks of pillows on them. She was breathing heavy, her lungs somehow working in her soul's body.

The scream she heard seemed to be echoing in her head.

She was so confused. She slid her back down the shelf, and sat on the floor. She pulled her knees in and clutched them, and tried not to start crying from fear.

So many questions flared in her head. What was that scream? Why could the two mean see her? Why did the tattooed one want to kill her? What were they doing there? The questions just kept spinning in her conscious.

But she felt she knew the answer to one of them. Those men in black robes had to have been some kind of demons, and she knew they were after her spirit.

She let that thought sink in, and despite how drastic her situation was, she found some slight comfort that there were people who she could at least interact with. If anything it would make this "life" of hers a little more interesting.

She calmed herself down, trying to forget the awful scream and the two men in black. The pessimist glanced around the store she had barged into. The place was warmer than the other parts of the mall, and had some soft, calming music playing through its speakers. The floor was carpet, and full of light, warm colors. The setting was quite calming to her.

Maria took a deep breath, and patiently waited for one of the men to barge in the store. After roughly ten minutes of calmly sitting around, she figured they had given up for the time being.

She stood up, noticing there were fewer people in this store than the others, and decided to pry around to at least find a decent spot to hide, if anything.

She wondered through the moderately-sized store, finding all sorts of tables, chairs, comforters, pillows and couches. She soon made her way into the back of the store, and found a large collection of beds laid out.

She passed by the beds, examining each one. They were all fairly bland, but in a nice, comforting way. All the beds were made up, and each one seemed to just call out for her to lay down on one. She ignored the calls though, and soon stepped into a poorly lit portion of the store, where a single bed lay out. She was surprised by the figure she saw laying on the bed. It was the man from the park she had tried to talk to earlier today who was dressed like a cosplayer.

She hesitated upon seeing him. He was clearly passed out, giving a very light sigh after each breath, but what caught her attention more than anything was the katana he had on his side. It looked almost exactly like the ones the two men who were going to kill her wielded.

The thought at first made her uneasy, but she reflected back that not only did he not see her, he didn't try to kill her either. She looked at the dreaming man, wondering why no one has bothered to tell him that people aren't allowed to sleep on the beds at the stores.

She smiled to herself, though she couldn't reason why, and sat down on the bottom edge of the bed the man was on. The bed creaked as she sat down, but the sleeping man didn't budge.

The plus looked at him. She could tell he had a good build, and was impressed by his overall appearance. It was very plain and lazy, but somehow held a powerful feel to it. She compared the men in black robes to demons, and found herself comparing the man in white to an angel. She wasn't sure why, but she felt oddly safe around him.

Maria jumped as the man shifted slightly, and he removed his arm from his face, revealing a pair of tired eyes. He sat up groggily and hunched over, still weary from his sleeping spell.

He tiredly looked up at her, their eyes meeting for the first time.

Maria immediately knew something was different about this guy. Earlier he acted like she didn't even exist, but now he was looking dead at her, fully aware of her presence.

"Yo," Maria nervously said.

The man grumbled, rubbed his eyes, and promptly threw himself backwards onto the bed, his eyes already shut.

Maria felt slightly annoyed at this, turned her body onto the bed, crossing her legs, now facing the Espada completely. She was offended that he had the audacity to just bluntly ignore her when she _knew_ he could see her.

"I know you can see me. Which means you must be able to hear me, too."

He rolled over, putting his back to her, and slightly grumbled.

"I'm talking to you!"

He didn't budge.

If she were alive, and not being chased by demons, and had a clue what was going on, she wouldn't have done what she did. Maria was a very calm individual, not prone to violent outbursts, but she felt she was on the edge of understanding, and was beginning to get desperate.

Maria yanked the pillow out from under the Arrancar's head and raised it high over her head. She placed her left foot and right knee on the bed, slung the pillow down as hard as she could, and smacked the man right in the face.

He rolled back over quickly, a few feathers politely settling onto the bed, holding his nose with both hands. He sat up and faced her.

"Can't a guy get some sleep around here?"

"Not when I need someone to tell me what the hell is going on!"

The two sat silent for a moment. The man lowered his hands from his face, revealing a bored looking expression.

"Just answer some of my questions, please," Maria pressed on, feeling that at last she had found a source to get some answers from. That, and she was happy to finally get to talk to someone.

The man brought his legs under him, sitting with them crossed on the bed, and looked away from her. He let out a sigh and scratched his head slightly.

"If I tell you, will you leave me alone?"

Hisagi ran across the parking lot, hand on his Zanpakuto. He was unsure of what to expect from the Hollow, though he tried to stay level-headed and stick with the basic techniques.

He searched for its Spiritual Pressure, and immediately found it.

He made a hard right and kept up his sprinting pace, and ran through a series of parked vehicles. He hadn't seen too many people outside, so he figured the Hollow sensed the large amounts of Reiatsu that he and Kira were emitting, and came to feed.

Hisagi sensed Kira take off to his left and head in a similar direction. He would wheel around the back of the Hollow, and they would jump the beast at the same time, one from each side. A simple strategy, but one that was quite effective, especially with low level Hollows.

He ran through the labyrinth of vehicles, and turned around a corner a large van was parked at.

Across from him on the other side of the parking lot, with no vehicles blocking his view, was the target. The creature was too far away to see clearly, appearing as just a black silhouette, but Hisagi could tell it was the Hollow. It stood slightly taller than a person, and had an odd shaped body, though it was too far to get any details.

He took three steps, and prepared to flash step within striking range, sensing Kira nearing the Hollows other side.

His mental process of doing this was interrupted however, as a large truck was suddenly rocketing through the air towards his face.


	6. Chapter 6

Hisagi threw his entire body to his right in a desperate attempt to avoid the flying vehicle. He felt the wind from the trucks tires graze his left shoulder as he fell to the ground. He caught himself on his right arm, and rolled himself up into a battle stance, unsheathing his Zanpakuto as he spun himself around.

He landed in a battle position, looking for more flying vehicles.

The skies seemed empty for the time being, so he brought his view down range toward the Hollow. He didn't see Kira, and he began to wonder where he was at and if he was okay, but the sound of the tossed truck crashing into another vehicle behind the Lieutenant distracted him from the thought.

He turned his attention behind him, and saw the red truck coming to a rest on top of a smashed sedan.

He caught himself looking away from the enemy, a fallacy which can cause death in a battle, and quickly turned his head back to where it should have been.

No vehicles were airborne, which offered a mixed feeling of surprise and relief. He took three steps, and used a flash step to propel himself toward the hollow.

The world around him turned to a blur of bright colors for a moment as his speed increased from the flow of spiritual pressure at his feet. He never quite understood how, but Hisagi, and apparently some other Soul Reapers he had spoken to, were able to see everything in this blurry world that emerged during a flash step. It was as if wherever he focused suddenly became clear, with just a slight haze around it. The complex workings of spiritual pressure and how they affect a spiritual body was always a confusing topic for the Lieutenant, so he never put too much thought into any of it.

He was, however, impressed by his vision as he focused where his target stood. The world of colors and haze opened itself up as he stared at where he somehow knew the hollow was standing.

The beast stood roughly eight feet tall, relatively short for a hollow, and was still looking where Hisagi had once stood. It was shaped like a centaur, with two pairs of feet on an elongated body with a human-like torso. The feet were reptilian, bearing five claws on the tips of each foot. It inverted knees were bent, and its body was covered in pale blue scales. It had a long tail which lay limp on the ground, about as long as its body, a white pincer on the tip of it.

The torso was rigid and broad shouldered, muscles seemingly popping out of the beast from their size. The pale blue scales ran up its back and the outside of its arms, its chest and stomach a dull grey. Pale white spikes peppered its arms randomly, each one arcing out down its large arms. Its hands were large, and the fingers on it were as long as its forearms. They were left dangling open, probably unable to clench into a fist or hold a weapon due to their ridiculous length. There were no fingernails on the tips, though scales covered the hands like gloves. It had a large hole in the center of its chest, one of two signature traits of a hollow.

Its mask almost shined in the sun, the pale white covering being the second signature trait of a hollow. Everything was located on the mask where it would be if it were a normal person wearing a normal mask. The eyes were where they should he, although they held a bright gold coloration. Its mouth was in the usual spot, although large fangs replaced the usual mouth. The teeth ran back farther than normal, going nearly to the tips of its cheeks. The bottom jaw of the mask seemed to extend out of the jaw, arcing out where the jaw and neck normally meet, and resting on the backs of the shoulders. The forehead stretched straight up into two pikes, equal length to the jaw bone. A long, messy mane of black hair hung out from behind the mask, coming down just past its shoulder blades.

Hisagi avoided looking into its eyes. No matter the Hollow, whenever he would look directly into its eyes, the feeling of fear he was fighting through would increase ten fold. The empty, lifeless gold eyes just seemed to bore into his very conscious.

The world again slowed and everything became clear again as he exited from his flash step. He landed on one knee just a sword length behind the Hollow, his back to the beast. He raised himself up and spun backwards, preparing to sever the Hollow from his four legs.

Something suddenly hit him, however, and he felt his legs leave the ground. His vision tried to stay on the Hollow's broad back, but failed to do so as he was tossed through the air. He fell on his back several yards away, wondering what had struck him.

He looked around, and saw Kira on the ground next to him, laying face down in the concrete. A car suddenly flew over them both, crashing into more vehicles far from the two Lieutenants. Hisagi sat up, trying to take in what had just happened.

Kira had pushed him down, saving him from being struck by the flying car, and then ducked for cover himself as the vehicle harmlessly passed over both of them. But Hisagi never saw the beast pick up a vehicle to throw it. He wondered what exactly was going on with this Hollow. He didn't sense another Hollow around, and had just assumed the Hollow had tossed the truck at him earlier. Maybe it was something different this time around.

Both Soul Reapers rose to their feet, facing the Hollow who still hadn't bothered to turn around and look at them. Hisagi hesitated, unsure if it was safe to move. He glanced around the parking lot, hoping to find a second Hollow somewhere among the vehicles.

What he saw took him by surprise. There were hundreds of people suddenly flooding out of the mall, running across the parking lot screaming. The panic of flying cars and trucks probably would be surprising to someone who wasn't a Soul Reaper, so Hisagi understand their sudden panic. He had somehow missed the people fleeing the scene because he was so focused on the Hollow.

But he couldn't have them running around outside while he was trying to fight. He began to worry what would happen if the people got in their cars, then they'd suddenly start getting tossed around too, causing their transportation to turn into steel flying death traps.

The Hollow began to move, snapping the Lieutenant out of his thoughts. It slowly turned its body, facing them both, and eventually brought its large mask around to stare down directly at them both.

The beast began to slowly tilt its head back, and its chest slowly started to puff out.

"Hisagi," Kira murmured, but the Soul Reaper was too caught up in his own thoughts to respond.

It gradually pulled its head farther back, almost looking straight up at the sky now, its chest continuing to expand.

"Hisagi? How should we approach?"

Hisagi heard his fellow Lieutenant this time, but couldn't convince himself to open his mouth to reply. He was too busy feeling the weight of every person's life in the parking lot push down on his shoulders. Panic slightly set in, but he ignored the churning feeling in his gut. He wasn't sure what to do. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kira take a small step backwards.

"Hisagi? There are people here who can get hurt. What should we do?"

Suddenly, three near by cars suddenly began to hover just inches off of the pavement, and silently glide over to the Hollow, slowly beginning to circle the creature. The vehicles hovered higher off the ground once they reached the Hollow, and each hung suspended in air at a slight angle, headlights facing the concrete.

Behind the beast, Hisagi could see several teenage girls running to a sports car.

One stopped, her large amounts of tan hair shuttering as she took a double take at the three hovering vehicles. Panic obviously had clawed itself in. To normal people, spiritual entities can't be seen, so all she most likely saw was three hovering vehicles. She began screaming at the other three girls, though the distance was too much for any clear words to be heard.

Suddenly the Hollow's entire body jerked, and it let out a gruesome scream. The cry rolled across the entire parking lot, and every window on every vehicle suddenly shattered at once.

The girls attempting to get in their car gave a stunned shout as the glass exploded in front of them as they fiddled with their keys. One fell backwards and landed on the ground, and the others suddenly ran off in the opposite direction from the floating automobiles. The girl who fell quickly got herself up and followed their lead.

The Hollow continued yelling, the call seeming to weigh Hisagi down even more.

"Hisagi?" Kira called to him.

Hisagi grit his teeth, his eyes nervous from the scene before him.

"Hisagi!"

"Let's go!" Hisagi demanded.

Hisagi led the charge, and leapt at the howling creature, sword raised above his head. He sensed Kira close behind, unsure of how successful this assault would be. He wasn't sure how, but he knew the Hollow had some kind of levitation abilities. His only real concern was if the Hollow could cause either of the Lieutenants to levitate.

He landed low on the ground just outside of the path of the floating cars, and jumped over one of the floating vehicles. He swung down at the Hollow, who had just stopped yelling, and waited for the successful feeling of his blade cutting into its mask.

But instead, he was offered the feeling of his blade cutting into the trunk of a car.

The vehicle he had hurdled a moment before was now blocking his path. The front of the car was smashed into the ground, and the tail end was jutting up at Hisagi. He put his feet on the roof of the vehicle, and pulled his Zanpakuto from the trunk, which popped open upon removal.

Suddenly, the vehicle seemed to be pushed out from the Hollow, Hisagi still on top. The car flew backwards, sending the Lieutenant away from the beast with it.

He passed Kira on his exit, seeing the Soul Reaper looking at Hisagi in utter disbelief.

Hisagi kicked himself over the top of the car, and landed softly on the ground. He looked back at the Hollow, who was now about fifty feet from the Lieutenant thanks to the tossed car. He sprinted back to face it, seeing Kira take a swing at the beast.

The Hollow didn't budge, and a car arced at Kira from his right side. The blonde Soul Reaper dived over the car, slicing the top of it with his Zanpakuto. He spun upon reaching the tail end of the car, sparks following him, and landed in a crouch. He took another swing at the Hollow as the dodged car fell into another part of the parking lot.

The last of the three floating cars suddenly glided silently in front of Kira, its bottom facing the Soul Reaper. He pulled his swing back, and brought his blade up in front of him in a defensive position. The car's bottom smashed into Kira's Zanpakuto, and he put his forearm against the back of his weapon to help stabilize himself, keeping his feet on the concrete.

The car flew away from the Hollow, Kira's feet kicking up dust as he flew back with it. Hisagi ran up and clashed with the tossed car, pushing against it as well.

Simultaneously, Kira ducked under the vehicle as Hisagi pulled himself over it, and the car harmlessly glided behind the two and smashed into another innocent automobile.

The two Soul Reapers landed on the ground, swords ready to defend.

Hisagi took a moment to assess the scene. He glanced around the parking lot, and saw no vehicles driving away, nor people running about. He assumed that everyone had abandoned the area, and felt free to really start to fight.

"Ye lord!" Hisagi began. "Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man!" A small red orb of energy began to form itself in his left hand. "Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south!"

He raised his hand up, bringing the glowing ball of energy up to face the Hollow who was calmly watching.

"Hado 31." The ball flared slightly and condensed itself. The warm energy began to seep into his wrist and out into the air around him. "Shakkaho!"

The Kido blast flew from his palm toward the Hollow. The beast hunched itself over and threw itself into the air. Despite its size and shape, the creature stopped its ascent around an impressive fifteen feet, the Kido blast passing under it.

The condensed ball of energy smacked into another parked vehicle, detonating on impact. The small explosion engulfed the front of the car, removing portions from the innocent bystander.

The Hollow landed in front of the smoldering remains, and suddenly turned around and ran in the opposite direction of the Soul Reapers, its long tail waving in the air.

"After him!" Hisagi called, already in pursuit.

The two Soul Reapers began their sprint after the creature, prepped for more hovering steel death traps.

Hisagi turned a corner in time to see the Hollow running through the parking lot, and used another Flash Step. Kira followed his lead.

The two landed right behind the Hollow within striking range. Both Lieutenants raised their Zanpakutos over the heads to deliver the blow.

The Hollow suddenly stopped in mid step and held both of its arms straight out from its sides. The Lieutenants knew what was going to happen, but the inertia from their leap was carrying them already, so the incoming attack was unavoidable.

Hisagi smacked into the back of the left arm, with Kira hitting the right, the Hollow succeeding in its double clothesline.

The two sailed through the air past the Hollow, doing a flip before hitting the concrete and coming to a stop. Hisagi was the first to rise.

"_This is ridiculous_," he thought to himself. "_We're losing to a basic Hollow_."

He wiped a small trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth as Kira rose up.

Hisagi stared at the Hollow. The creature stood unmoving, its eyes unwavering as it faced two Lieutenants. It let out a low growl under its breath, though loud enough for Hisagi to hear it. He tensed up, ready for the next assault.

Hisagi hadn't realized it at first, but he had landed inches away from a small truck. He glanced at it, the thought of it suddenly floating an all too real possibility.

Then something caught his eye. The green vehicle slowly began to develop a small layer of light blue particles on its outside surface. The phenomena kept his attention as the particles seemed to form out of the air and slowly coat the top of the truck.

Once the particles had formed a thin, semi-transparent sheet of light blue particles around the truck, it slowly began to float straight up from the ground.

He quickly looked back at the Hollow. The gears in Hisagi's head began turning . . .

The two sat on the bed, an awkward silence filling the air. Starrk wasn't sure how to approach the situation. He hadn't really understood why he had offered to tell this girl the truth, but knew he'd already dug himself in too deep to back out now.

The thought of her many reactions concerned him. But the thought of why he was helping her concerned him even more. It just seemed too out of character for himself.

He looked at her, her ocean blue eyes intently staring into his dull, blue-grey eyes. A lock of hair fell onto her face, and she brushed it to the side, awaiting her answer.

"Well?" She impatiently asked, her cheeks puffing out slightly like a little kid who was frustrated.

He let out a sigh and looked down, closing his eyes. He looked out into the furniture store, the soft music still playing despite the mall now being abandoned.

He scratched the back of his head. "Well, there's no easy way to put it."

He glanced at her. "You're dead."

The girl tensed up slightly and looked down, a sad look sweeping her face. Her eyes arched in, her mouth tensing into a frown. He could tell she was trying not to cry.

To his surprise, she took a deep breath and weakly smiled. "I thought as much."

"I guess confirming it was all I really wanted."

The two sat there. Starrk patiently waited for what to do next. Somewhere he was hoping she would just wander off and leave him be. But somewhere he felt like he should talk to her some more. He was just unsure of what to say.

"So what are you?"

The question took him by surprise. He looked at her, a blank look on his face.

He didn't exactly want to tell her he was a collection of spirits-turned-hollow.

"I've seen three people who could see me since I've," she hesitated on her word choice. "Passed . . . I'm confident that two of them were trying to kill me. So what does that make you? And what were they?"

Starrk found slight humor in her confusion. He was the true villain in the situation, a Hollow meant to devour human souls, and she saw the Soul Reapers, the heroes who fight off the Hollows, as the antagonists.

For a moment the Primera felt like asking what her name was, but refrained. He knew that after today, they would never see one another again. Another useless effort to fill his lonely soul with company.

The thought caught his attention.

"I'll explain to you the basics of Soul Society, and their enemies. That should be enough for you to know what is going on."

The thought made him realize why he decided to help this girl. She was like him. She was living in a world full of people she could see, but no one she could befriend. All alone in a vast, populated world.

He empathized with her.

"I've figured it out!" Hisagi called to Kira, avoiding another flying car.

"Figured what out?"

"How these cars are hovering around." Kira flash stepped to Hisagi's side, prepping for the information. Neither Lieutenant took their gaze from the Hollow.

"Pay attention to the vehicles before they raise off the ground. A small layer of spiritual particles form over them." Hisagi waited for a vehicle to begin to rise, though naturally none did when he wanted them to. "That Hollow is using its spiritual pressure to move its surroundings."

"So it has some kind of special spiritual pressure, then?"

"That's what I'm thinking." Hisagi replied, confident in his assessment.

"Then if it can wrap its spiritual pressure around objects, why hasn't it done that to us?"

Hisagi hesitated before responding, feeling a bead of sweat drip down his face. "I haven't really thought on that."

A disappointed air suddenly filled the space around them.

"But if I had to guess, I'd say it's because we have spiritual pressure as well."

"You're thinking it can't place its spiritual pressure on other objects that already have their own energy?" Kira responded.

"I guess . . ."

"Well, let's hope you're right on that. If it can toss us around like those cars then we're finished." Kira stated.

The Hollow seemed to have been waiting for the two to assess their situation. As soon as Kira finished his sentence, it leaned forward, a silver car flying out from behind it.

It arced toward the two Shinigami, intent on hitting its target.

Hisagi flash stepped away, though Kira stood his ground. He lowered his Zanpakuto to his side.

"Raise your head," he called out. "Wabisuke!"

Hisagi landed several yards away, just in time to see Kira's blade morph into its released state. The curvature of the sealed katana straightened out, and where a katana would normally end now had two 90 degree angles, giving the blade an almost hook shape.

Hisagi didn't care for the look of Kira's zanpakuto, finding it almost cruel, with the cutting edge on the inside of the curve, though its ability was undeniably useful.

Kira leapt over the top of the car, striking its hood with Wabisuke. It fell at an increased speed, splitting the concrete slightly as it crashed to the ground.

The Lieutenant of Squad Three landed confidently. Hisagi knew that his Zanpakuto was perfect for this kind of battle.

Wabisuke had the ability to double the weight of anything it collides with. If there was a limit to how heavy an object the Hollow could lift, Kira would meet it.

The Hollow slightly tilted its head at Kira, appearing almost confused despite its lack of facial features.

The Hollow let out a roar, and Hisagi noticed spiritual particles gathering on a large van next to Kira.

"Kira!" Hisagi called. "The van!"

Kira immediately swung his blade at the van just as it was lifting off the ground. It fell back to earth, the vehicle rocking as it landed.

The Hollow let out a frustrated bark, and more particles engulfed the van. Kira again hit the van, though it still slowly lifted off the ground. Kira struck the vehicle yet again, and it crashed to the ground. The tires burst upon landing, and the concrete split open.

The Hollow let out a roar, though Hisagi wasn't about to give it the time to make its next move.

The tattooed Shinigami leapt at the beast, Zanpakuto held over his head. The Hollow turned his attention away from Kira, and used its ability to toss yet another car at Hisagi.

Without warning, Kira silently appeared under the vehicle and raked his blade across its bottom. The vehicle's angle was suddenly cut short as it arced harmlessly under Hisagi's feet, the doubled weight being too much to stay air borne.

Hisagi swung at the Hollow, though the Hollow stepped to its right to avoid the blow. He landed in a low crouch and swung at the Hollow's front legs, though it leapt backwards, avoiding the blow. Hisagi rose up for another attack, but was suddenly stopped in mid-step.

The beast had swung its massive tail around, and it collided with Hisagi's right hip. The momentum from the swing sent Hisagi flying a few yards, his flight cut short by landing in the back of a truck. His head crashed into the back of the bed, rocking him slightly. He felt a trickle of blood fall on his face.

He rubbed a bit of the red substance out of his eyes, and brought his attention to where he last saw the creature. The beast was missing.

He clambered out of the bed of the truck and looked around the parking lot. He noticed the Hollow running away, heading for a street that led away from the mall. The street seemed littered with abandoned vehicles. Perhaps they also saw the hovering vehicles earlier and found it best to escape.

He leapt after the Hollow, seeing Kira appear next to him.

"Let's finish him, Kira!" He told the Lieutenant.

They chased after the Hollow, and just as it reached the street, it sharply turned around to face them, its clawed feet tearing up small chunks of concrete as it spun around.

It roared in defiance, almost calling out a challenge to the two Lieutenants.

Without warning, Hisagi heard a crash to his right. He glanced over, and saw Kira in mid-step being tossed to the ground by a flying dumpster.

Hisagi skidded to a stop. "Kira!"

The blonde soul reaper hit the ground hard on his back, and just as he did, his Zanpakuto fell from his grasp, clanging as it hit the concrete. Kira was quick to roll onto his hands and knees, and he made a dive for his blade. The same dumpster suddenly flew backwards and crashed into Kira's face. He fell flat on his back again.

Hisagi was preparing to run over and assist his partner, when he noticed the sun was suddenly blocked out. A large shadow seemed to be looming over him. He turned around, prepared for the worst.

The Hollow stood silently in the abandoned road, staring directly at the Lieutenant. Hovering several yards above him was a large semi truck, yellow signs on its front and back reading "wide load."

The shadow the giant vehicle cast on Hisagi was menacing.

Without a sound, the floating vehicle began its accelerated descent toward Hisagi.

His first instinct was to avoid it. Despite its great speed, the truck was very much avoidable. However, dodging would result in Kira taking the full force of the vehicle.

Hisagi braced for the assault.

"Reap, Kazeshini."

Maria found all of what she had just heard surprisingly acceptable. Despite how ridiculous this guys story was, it all did connect.

She ran everything through her head again, and voiced them to the man to confirm.

"I'm dead. And this chain on my chest is evidence of that." A silent nod was given in return.

"The two guys that chased me are "Soul Reapers" and their goal is to find lost souls and send them to the "Soul Society," correct?" Another nod.

"They also serve to kill "Hollows," which are souls that reside in the human world too long and turn into monsters. That was the menacing roar I heard earlier." Another nod.

She chuckled at the irony of running away from the good guys.

Maria looked at the man in white, one question still burning in her head. "You never told me what you are."

The man silently sat on the bed, unwavering, his gaze at the floor.

"I don't know why, but I believe you completely with all of this nonsense." The feeling of admitting it out loud wasn't as satisfying as she had hoped. She felt her stomach slightly churn at the thought of being dead.

She didn't allow herself to panic over it, though. She knew if she'd think about all of her regrets and losses, she wouldn't be able to do anything. She'd start crying her eyes out, and with her luck she'd turn into one of those monsters.

Maria told herself she could brood on the fact she was dead later.

"Not going to answer?"

The man silently laid back in the bed, and again put his arm over his face, not once looking at her face.

She was kind of frustrated he was ignoring her, but she decided not to push it. He had told her mostly what she wanted, so she decided to keep her half of the deal.

The Plus got up from the bed and bowed to the Primera. "Thank you, very much."

She turned and left the store without another word. The soul finally had a purpose in her new life. She had to track down those guys in black and have them take her to the Soul Society.

The feeling of having to do something served as a nice distraction from the reality of being dead.


	7. Chapter 7

Starrk watched the spirit make her way out of the store in silence. She seemed to walk with a new air about her. He took slight pride in seemingly lifting her mood.

But, the thought also reverberated in him a further feeling of loneliness. Despite how much he wanted to talk to her and befriend her, he knew he shouldn't, and he knew he couldn't.

His presence would tax her soul after so long, and like so many others, she too would deteriorate and die. He was a Hollow, she was a human soul.

It was ethically wrong. Yet just like so many other times, it bothered Starrk.

He could recall countless events of wanting to meet people and befriend them. His envy seemingly knew no bounds. Humans have it so easy.

He tried to calm his mind. His vacation to the human world wasn't treating him too well this time around.

That's when the thought came to mind. The entire reason he came to the human world in the first place.

That time was coming around.

He lay motionless in the bed, unsure if he should go to see it or not.

After much contemplation, he decided he should. The Arrancar figured if he had gone through this much trouble to come here, he may as well follow through with the entire goal of his trip.

He lazily rose from the bed, stretching slightly.

Again, he felt his mind wandering to the girl he had just met.

Starrk wondered what she would do. She said she was going to go find those soul reapers, who, judging from their spiritual pressure, were currently fighting a Hollow. He wondered if she'd see them in mid-combat.

To a human, that'd be one amazing sight.

He found a little humor in the thought of her staring at the battle like a little kid watching an anime episode. He slowly began to make his way to the store exit, taking his time. The soft music gave way to emptiness as he walked into the halls of the shopping center.

The empty place made Starrk uncomfortable.

The Arrancar was used to seeing it packed with people of all ages, race, and gender. Seeing it empty was just a symbolic way of reminding him of himself.

He silently began making his way to the doors, his mind ever bothering him as his footsteps echoed down the halls.

Hisagi felt the blade in his hands phase into its released form, a slight tingling sensation running through his palms as the weapon began to glow as it morphed and contorted.

His released Zanpakuto, Kazeshini, spread into his free hand and solidified. He grasped both handles, and wasted no time reacting.

He threw the glowing blade in his right hand at the on coming truck, allowing his blade and the spiritual pressure it gave off to slice the vehicle in half.

Both halves of the semi fell to each side of Hisagi and Kira, offering a clear line of sight between the Hollow and Hisagi. The crash of the truck tore up concrete and shook the ground, tossing up dirt around the two Shinigami.

Hisagi held his hand above his head, his blade still in the air spinning from his attack on the truck. It quietly fell into his hand, and he brought the weapon down to his side, hearing the chains of his weapon clang as they fell to the concrete road while the glow dissipated from his completely released Zanpakuto.

He now held in each hand a double-bladed scythe, one blade inverted on each weapon, the handles being nearly as long as his legs. A long chain connected each weapon at its base.

Hisagi took a moment to gaze at his opponent, allowing the dust to settle from the destroyed semi truck.

The Hollow reeled its head back, and let out another fearsome roar. The road they were on was lined with multi-story apartment complexes on both sides, hindering Hisagi's freedom to battle.

He knew he'd have to end this soon before the Hollow ran deeper into the packed city.

The screech from the beast soon caused the windows in the apartments at its back to shatter simultaneously, causing the Lieutenant to recall the windowless cars in the parking lot.

The Hollow let its war cry dissipate, and slowly lowered its head to stare down its opponent. Glass shards smoothly rained down on the Hollow.

That was when Hisagi caught his fault.

He had been waiting for the beast to attack first, so Hisagi may counter and hopefully end this ridiculous battle. Unfortunately, the Hollow now had its new weapon.

Its gaze unwavering, the glass silently stopped falling, and the shards held suspended in mid air.

"Bakudo, 39!" Hisagi quickly called out, raising his fist to the Hollow. "Enkosen!"

He felt his spiritual pressure twist around his raised arm, condensing together just off of his fist. The feeling made his back feel heavy, though his chest and arm comfortably warmed as his energy flooded across them.

A gold, spinning shield appeared in front of Hisagi, providing a line of defense between the Lieutenant and the Hollow.

The shards of glass that were suspended quickly shot through the air at an alarming speed, colliding with the shield just as it successfully formed.

They slammed into the spinning wall of energy, burning up upon impact. The assault continued for several seconds, Hisagi crouching behind the shield, holding it with his fist.

Hisagi waited for a lull in the oncoming glass, and hurled the blade in his left hand through the shield, shattering it in the process. The golden chunks that were clumsily falling to the ground revealed the Hollow to Hisagi, who was hoping his surprise attack would work. Hisagi heard the broken portions of his shield evaporate as they hit the ground, and listened as the chains on his weapon rattled.

The Hollow again showed its surprising agility, and side stepped the spinning blade, causing the pin-wheel looking weapon to wedge itself into the apartment. More shards of glass shot at Hisagi's location. He leapt into the air, the shards passing harmlessly under him and harmlessly over the injured Kira, who was still lying on the ground.

Hisagi could sense his spiritual pressure, so he knew he was still "alive."

In mid air he pulled the chain with his left hand, jerking the weapon free from the building. He caught the weapon and fell toward the Hollow, who jumped away from Hisagi as the Shinigami swung at the location the fallen spirit was a split second before. His blade hit glass on the concrete, and Hisagi realized he had landed on a pile of glass.

The Lieutenant didn't hesitate to attack again, however. He immediately took a step forward and threw the weapon in his right hand at the Hollows waist.

The Hollow jumped strait up into the air, Hisagi's blade flying under the beast. The Hollow landed heavily, the chain still flying past it.

Hisagi felt movement under his feet, and glanced down. The shards he was standing on began to vibrate slightly.

The Lieutenant desperately threw his entire body backwards, performing a back flip as the shards fired strait up into the overcast sky.

He landed on a knee, and pulled the chain with his right hand. The air-borne blade several yards behind the Hollow came back toward Hisagi, the beast oblivious of the weapon flying toward its back.

Kazeshini cut into the back of the Hollow's hip, the blue scales on its back being torn out of the way. It cleanly worked its way through, exiting the creature and causing a spinning trail of dark blood to splash across the road.

Its gold eyes expanded from the shock, and it let out a cry of pain as Hisagi caught his Zanpakuto. It brought one of its spiky arms down to clutch the gash that extended from its umbilicus to its waist, its long fingers successfully hiding the wound from sight.

Hisagi was momentarily surprised that his attack had worked. However, he quickly pulled his weapon back to make the finishing throw.

But as he did, an incoming spiritual pressure caught his attention, and held him in place.

It was a powerful spiritual pressure, and it sent a chill down his spine. The intent to kill was ridiculous.

He began to turn his head around to see the oncoming assailant.

The speed at which the entity was approaching was phenomenal, and the closer it got, the deeper the feeling of concern etched its way into his head.

He was now facing completely away from the Hollow, completely ignoring the fact that the beast was still there. He lowered his arm as he turned.

The spiritual pressure closed in at a faster pace than when he had first sensed it. The closer it got, the more he realized what was causing such a ferocious feeling.

His back was now rigid, entirely turned away from the Hollow. The sudden flash of movement just barely caught his attention in the peripherals of his left eye.

The world seemed to slow down as the spiritual pressure screamed past him. He turned his head as fast as he could to follow the source of it, but it seemed that no matter how quick he turned, the only thing his eye could trace were the toes of a black Chinese shoe.

He noticed glass reflecting the sun in the air glittering around the toes, realizing they were the pieces the Hollow had tossed at the sky moments before. As his head turned, the falling shards swept toward the shoe, altering their original downward path.

Hisagi turned around, the shoe now out of sight, and was surprised by a sudden gust coming from behind him. The burst of air was enough to toss several trashcans and the broken glass past the Lieutenant.

Finally facing the Hollow once more, he saw Soi Fon covering the front of the beast. She had one leg on its front left knee, the other on its right shoulder. Her right arm was placed in the Hollow's chest.

It took Hisagi a moment to take in what had just happened, but he knew that Soi Fon had flown in out of nowhere and had successfully stabbed the Hollow with her Zanpakuto.

She pulled her hand from the beast's chest, revealing her released weapon. Suzumebachi covered her right arm almost down to her elbow in an ornate gold and black armor, with a single blade covering her middle finger. Hisagi knew of its ability, but had never seen it in person: _Nigeki Kessatsu_, Death in Two Steps.

She began to bring her arm back down to deliver the second stab, thus finishing the beast. However, to Hisagi's surprise, her white Captain's jacket suddenly lurched away from the Hollow and toward the Lieutenant at an alarming speed.

He realized the Hollow had used its ability to hit the Captain with something, though Hisagi wasn't able to tell what she got hit with. The Lieutenant also wasn't able to correctly judge the speed at which the Captain of the Onmitsukido was flying at him.

He got hit hard in the sternum and fell backwards, his eyes shutting in response. He felt the wind leave his body and his weapon drift from his grasp. His back hit the ground, and he could tell he had been rocked.

Soi Fon landed on her stomach. Though she wasn't entirely sure what she had landed on, she was thankful it didn't hurt too badly. The only thing she was positive of was that a car door had flown out from behind the Hollow as she was preparing to stab the creature, and it hit her in the collarbone. She had flown back so far not because of the force of the blow, but the door actually carried her away from the beast. That led her to believe the Hollow had some kind of ability to move its environment.

She didn't know the specifics of how it did this, but she didn't want to. One more stab and the confrontation would be over.

She cringed at the though of failing to kill it on the first try, and placed her left hand on what she thought was going to be grass or dirt, yet she placed her palm on something far from either, however, and the feeling surprised her. It felt like muscle.

She suddenly felt pressure on her butt, and the Captain wasn't sure how to react.

Startled, she raised her head up slightly and quickly turned her head. To her surprise, her nose politely bumped into Hisagi's.

Hisagi lay paralyzed. It took him a moment, but he found that Soi Fon was lying on top of him, stomach to stomach, and his hand was where it most definitely should not be.

The two lay there for a time that felt like forever, though in reality it was probably only around two seconds.

The Lieutenant was terrified.

He knew no way to react. Now, if this had been Matsumoto, no, any other female in all of Soul Society, he could react effectively in a situation like this. However, given the current circumstance, he knew of no reaction that could safely resolve the current situation.

He removed his hand, feeling a nervous sweat bead drip down his face. He could feel his eyes widen as his fear grew.

Without warning, Soi Fon flash stepped off of the Lieutenant, several steps away, her back to him. He nervously sat up, thankful for the weight of the tiny woman to leave his body.

"Hey!"

He recognized Kira's voice and was thankful, both that he was conscious again and for the interruption of the current scene. The blonde Soul Reaper had stumbled out from behind the remains of the semi truck, and judging by his facial expression it was clear he had walked onto an odd scene.

But his face quickly turned serious, and he gestured with his Zanpakuto.

"The Hollow's escaping!"

He had entirely forgotten about the creature that he had been fighting just moments before. He looked where the beast had been, and saw it running toward the mall parking lot yet again, its long tail swaying as it ran.

"What are you idiots doing?" Soi Fon yelled at them while turning to face them. Hisagi was surprised to see her face slightly pink.

His combat gears began turning again, however, and he grabbed his fallen weapon and stood up.

"After him!" Soi Fon ordered.

The three began their pursuit in silence, Hisagi scared, Kira nervous, and Soi Fon pissed off.

Despite beginning the chase at the same time, Soi Fon naturally pulled ahead of the group in a short amount of time.

Maria walked through the empty parking lot, somehow not surprised that it was devoid of both life and windows. She began to pick up her pace, unsure where the "Soul Reapers" had gone to.

She got to the edge of the parking lot, and came to an interesting sight.

Various dumpsters and signs were lying around the outside of an apartment complex, which was also missing all of its windows. A semi truck lay in the middle of the road, split clear down the middle. She noticed a few people daring enough to poke their head out of the windows, though she didn't acknowledge them.

It's not like they could see her anyway.

She looked for clues as to which way to go, surveying the battle field.

She tried to imagine what kind of battle could lead to the devastation here. Who would cut a truck in half and why? Was it necessary to throw a traffic sign and dumpsters? And why did everything seem to be missing their windows?

The Plus looked to the sky, somehow hoping for either an answer or directions. She was given neither, though noticed that the sun had began its decent.

She pushed a lock of her blonde hair out of her face, realizing her pony tail has somewhat fallen apart. She removed the hair tie and let her hair down for a moment.

She shut her eyes, and felt a slight breeze run its cold hands through her hair. The feeling of simply relaxing was nostalgic. For a brief moment, while the wind was rushing by her, she let everything go. At that moment it didn't matter that there is a crazy monster running around the city, it didn't matter that she could cease to exist if she messes one thing up, and it certainly didn't matter that she was dead.

A small grin tugged at the sides of her mouth, the wind letting go of her hair.

It was a nice feeling.

Her empty mind subconsciously caught on to something.

Her eyes tore open, shocked at the feeling. She couldn't wrap her head around it.

Somehow, she could _feel_ where the "Soul Reapers" were, and there were now _three_ of them. She couldn't believe it. It was as if she had a radar in her head that just suddenly turned on and pointed her where to go.

She tried to focus on the feeling more, afraid to let it go, though she found the more she concentrated on it, the less she could feel them. Her stomach got queasy the harder she tried.

The Plus gave up trying. The feeling she had was completely gone.

But, she didn't let that get her down. Somehow, she had a direction.

She smiled, now determined to track these guys down.

Maria put her hair back up, and ran down the street after the Soul Reapers.

Hisagi leapt on top of another roof, barely keeping Soi Fon in sight. Every step she took made her drift farther ahead.

The Lieutenant turned, and saw Kira lagging behind. The injured Lieutenant was struggling to keep up Soi Fon's monster pace.

Hisagi turned to Soi Fon's direction, preparing to shout something to the extent of "Do you even know where the hell we're going?" but kept his mouth shut as he saw the Captain land on a building and stop moving.

The tattooed Soul Reaper landed behind her, Kazeshini's chains rattling as they met with the rooftop. Kira landed soon after, clutching his wound.

"What's wrong, Captain?" Kira asked, only partially out of breath.

"I lost him."

Hisagi raised an eye brow.

"I can't sense that Hollow anymore. And if I can't, it's not like you guys can."

Hisagi and Kira gave a passing glance of, "did she really just say that?" to one another, but both were wise enough to stay silent.

"Well then, what should we do?" Hisagi asked.

"We wait," Soi Fon replied. "It's a wounded, wild beast. It can't stay hidden for long. It'll jump at the nearest opportunity to feed."

"So we use some innocent person as bait?" Kira asked.

"That's right." Soi Fon turned to face the Lieutenant. "Got a problem with that?"

"Of course I do," Kira boldly replied. "What if we can't catch it in time and someone gets hurt?"

"What else can we do?" Soi Fon asked, the look on her face unchanging.

Kira got quiet.

"There's no other option, Kira." Hisagi told his friend. He placed a comforting hand on the wounded Lieutenants shoulder.

"And besides," Soi Fon announced as she turned around. "I can catch _anything_ in time."

Maria jogged around a corner, somewhat surprised she hadn't seen many people around. Guess news of the haunted mall spread quick.

She slowed her pace, and eventually came to a stop. She had been running for a good twenty minutes, unsure of where to go now.

She looked around where she was at, a dark road, with high buildings on both sides of the street. She figured she'd mix it up, and instead of following the road, take an alley or two.

"_Why not?_" she thought to herself.

She turned into the alley, catching her breath as she walked. The alley was filthy, with overrun dumpsters, wood pallets, and sheet metal littering the sides. She shut her eyes as she walked.

She put both hands on her face, and began to rub her tired eyes. She was tired.

It clicked in the blonde's' mind that she hadn't slept since she had died.

She removed her hands from her face in time to see that the dark alley ended abruptly in a brick wall.

Sure, she was expecting a chain link fence or something like that, but not a wall.

Frustrated, she turned around to exit the alley.

As she turned, to her horror, there was something standing at the alley's opening.

The hollow let out a fearsome growl.


	8. Chapter 8

Maria froze at the sight of the creature. Sure, its monstrous appearance was intimidating, as was its fearsome roar, but its eyes are what truly froze the Plus. The golden eyes looked at her in a frenzied manner, the beasts white mouth slowly opening and closing, as if imagining chewing her up. She couldn't explain it, but she could sense a wretched aura flooding from the beast, causing the air in the ally to feel heavy.

She subconsciously took a step back toward the brick wall. The feeling of being a dead person was miserable enough, let alone a dead person hunted down by some malevolent spirit with an appetite. She recalled what the Man in White had told her about these "Hollows." The thought of being devoured did not sit well with her.

The Hollow let out a short bark, saliva bursting from its mouth. She noticed a smaller mouth inside the larger mouth, remembering that its white face was simply a mask. Drool fell onto the concrete.

She looked for an exit of some sort, some way she could escape from the ally and run away. The only way out she could find was blocked by the Hollow. The blonde looked around for a weapon of sort, some line of defense. She found none that would be remotely effective.

Maria tried to scream as the monster stomped towards her, but her lips simply fell limp.

She gave up.

Suddenly she sensed a presence behind her as well, causing her blue eyes to widen in disbelief. Her mind wondered how someone could appear behind her. There was only a brick wall with no way through or over. Curiosity took control from her fear, and she turned around to meet the new arrival.

Soi Fon quickly caught on to the location of the Hollow. Its roar was unmistakable, and it recklessly let its spiritual pressure flow once it found its meal. She turned to her lieutenants, who judging by their looks had also caught on.

"Move out!" She demanded as she leapt towards the hollow.

She knew she would have to hurry to catch the Hollow before it consumed the innocent person it was assaulting. She was quick to enter a flash step, leaving the other two Soul Reapers far behind, but the Captain knew they would catch up. Soi Fon had nearly reached her top speed when she suddenly sensed another Spiritual Pressure at the location of the Hollow.

Maria was stunned. As she turned, a tall man in a strange white outfit silently walked past her. His shoulder length hair lazily swayed as a breeze quietly rolled through the ally. She couldn't believe it. The Man in White . . .

He stopped several feet in front of the Plus, his back facing her. He scratched the back of his head and let out a sigh.

Maria was still awe struck that he had shown up when the Hollow let out another cry. This one more threatening than the last.

A pang of concern suddenly shot through her. "Hey! Be careful, that things n-"

The Hollow let out another bark, interrupting her statement. The Man in White let his arm fall from his head to his side.

To the Plus's amazement, every inanimate object in the ally suddenly began floating as the creature at the opening to the ally lowered its body to the ground, letting out a low growl. She could barely see it, but the various dumpsters, pallets, metal sheets, and random bits of trash had an odd hue of blue on them, silently suspended off the ground.

She didn't understand it completely, but she understood the Hollow was somehow causing it. The images of the various objects slamming into the Man in White made her panic. The way he was standing implies he is going to fight, but how can one fight something like that, who can use the entire environment as a weapon?

Starrk stared at the Hollow in front of him. He understood immediately what it was. Aizen and one of Starrk's fellow Espada enjoy creating "special" Hollows, giving them unique powers to go test out. This Hollow's power was clearly to wrap its Spiritual Energy around foreign objects and use them as it sees fit. The Primera Espada wondered why it had not used its ability on the girl or himself, so he just figured that the Hollow couldn't ensnare objects with Spiritual Energy of their own.

Starrk's ability to analyze a situation was just another part of him he disliked. Just further proof that he was too strong for his own good. He would trade anything to be able to stare in confusion at the Hollow just as the girl behind him was.

He plainly stared at the Hollow, the creature seemingly hesitant to attack one of its own. However, the creature had the mental ability of a low level Hollow, thriving off of instincts. It was essentially a wild animal, and Starrk knew it was afraid of him.

Frightened animals either run away, or stay and fight. Which will it be?

The Primera prayed for the first, but knew better. The Hollow roared yet again, and the floating objects in the ally turned towards the Primera.

Starrk sighed and placed his hands in his pockets. He closed his eyes, and stopped masking his Spiritual Pressure.

The sudden wave of energy stunned Hisagi. He fell out of his flash step onto the top of another building. Kira landed next to him.

"What the hell!" Hisagi called out, looking up. Several blocks away, bursting out between buildings was a massive stream of blue energy. It arced into the sky as the sun began its decent, causing a contrast of the blue energy on the orange sky. The city seemed to turn a hazy blue from the aura, a sharp breeze streaming away from the source of the light.

The energy was incredible, easily comparable to that of a Captain. The weight of the Spiritual Pressure was crushing. Hisagi knew immediately what was emitting such ridiculous energy. The Arrancar they were hunting for had finally revealed itself.

Maria didn't have a clue what was going on. A brilliant light shot from her savior, and it was as if the weight of the light forced everything floating in the ally to crash violently back to the ground. The beast was lying on its stomach, seemingly forced down by the light as well.

The Plus couldn't quite explain it, but she too had collapsed once the blue pillar appeared. She hadn't noticed it at first, but she couldn't move once she had crumpled to her knees. Her eyes were stuck on the Man in White, though she couldn't quite focus them completely. Suddenly she caught herself starving, and at the same time felt like the chain on her chest was being pulled into her.

The creature gasped, as if its lungs were being pressed down along with the rest of her body. It placed its large hands on the ground, and attempted to stand. Its body quivered with every inch, as if it had a massive weight on its back.

The Hollow managed to stand up, roaring triumphantly as it straightened its back. Suddenly, amongst the stream of blue light, an odd red haze formed around the beast's mouth. The light solidified into a scarlet orb, and Maria could feel an uncomfortable presence about it.

She realized this was some kind of attack, and wanted to run or yell, but could do neither. There may as well have been hundreds of hands holding her entire body in place. She found it harder to breath.

Without warning, a similar red light consumed the ally, as if a spotlight was bursting from the Man in Whites chest. This new red light consumed the blue light in the ally, and caused a frightening noise to echo off the walls as it burst forth.

The rush of energy flung Maria backwards, slamming her face first into the brick wall.

Maria awoke to an odd sight. She was in the same ally, although it was now shaped a little differently. From where she had last seen the Man in White standing marked the start of the smoldering trail. The black burn marks trailed out across the rest of the ally, into the street and stopping right in front of a tall building, as if whatever caused the burn marks stopped to prevent the structure from being burned. The walls of the buildings in the ally were scorched as well, up to the second story.

Maria then realized the Man in White was no where to be seen, along with the creature that was going to devour her. She quickly stood up, in a hurry to find where he went.

But she quickly fell to her knees. She had not noticed it, but she was exhausted and did not know why. Her stomach roared as she got light headed.

She could not put the pieces together. The Man in White swoops in and saves the day, disappears in a brilliant flash of red, and now what?

Maria suddenly felt her head get hot, and she fell to the ground. She tried to move her body, but her arms and legs would not respond. She could not remember ever feeling so exhausted. She decided it best to just shut her eyes and take a quick nap . . .

"Dammit!" Maria suddenly heard, jerking her from her slumber. "It got away."

She was still in the ally, though this time with company. The two men dressed in black from earlier were in the ally, the one with black hair and tattoos crouched beside her, as well as a third person walking into the entrance to the ally. It was a small woman, dressed in black robes with a white jacket thrown over them. She was the one who woke Maria up.

"So, what do we do now, Captain?" The blonde man asked.

"Do your job, then we go back to the Soul Society," she stated begrudgingly.

Maria was not sure what all was going on, but was happy the people she was looking for found her.

"Yes, Captain Soi Fon," the blonde one quickly replied. He looked at the tattooed one, "Hisagi."

"Yeah, I'm on it."

He looked down on Maria. "Can you move? You're probably really tired from being so close to such a powerful cero, huh?"

She tried to get up, but was unsuccessful. She tried to reply, but was unsuccessful.

She just accepted that she was really tired.

"Well, don't worry. We're Soul Reapers, and it's our job to help send people like you to the Soul Society." He unsheathed his katana, but this time Maria wasn't afraid.

"Don't worry, this doesn't hurt a bit."

She silently watched as he pressed the bottom of his Katana on her forehead.

She wanted to ask "Is that it?" or something similar, but she just looked out at the people in the ally. Her body began to feel strange, and a bright light started to blot out her vision.

She noticed the man with the tattoos smiling at her, a comforting look despite the menacing appearance, the woman seemingly in charge elegantly walking over, one of her hands covered in black and gold armor, reminiscent of a hornet, and she wondered where her savior was, making her feel a little lonely. He was the only one she talked to since dying.

So many thoughts ran in her head, but they were all blocked by a blinding, deafening light.

Coyote Starrk quietly sat in the park, again masking his presence to elude the Soul Reapers. He sat on the same bench he always sits at, listening to the quiet patter of the fountain. No one else was in the park, but he did not mind. Loneliness was a usual thing for Starrk, one he certainly has gotten used to.

He looked up into the sky, happy he got to see what he came here for. The deep red sun silently slithered its way into the horizon, offering Starrk a sight he truly loves.

In Hueco Mundo, there is only night, and in Las Noches, there is only day.

Starrk stared off, content that he got to see the cross world between night and day.

He debated reflecting on his day, considering why he chose to save that girl, despite his presence nearly killing her. He wanted to stay and wait for her to wake up, but him simply being there was too much of a toll on her, let alone the fact the three Soul Reapers were on the way.

The Primera decided it was appropriate to leave her to the Soul Reapers. That is there job, after all. Less work for the Espada to do.

But thinking on the events of the day was too much effort for the moment. Starrk decided to shut them off somewhere and block them out. Just more memories of mistakes and lonely regrets to mull over.

He looked at the sun setting, and debated what he was going to do once he returned to his home. He really didn't want to put up with the incoming questions from Lilynette, and he really didn't want to go through the trouble of explaining what happened to an experimental Hollow, and he really didn't want to even get off the park bench.

So he didn't.

Coyote Starrk silently sat on the park bench and watched the sun disappear, making room for the stars. He smiled at the thought of returning though. Los Noches can be lonely, but there is at least always someone to pester the Arrancar.

Starrk looked forward to going back despite all the trouble he'd have to endure, but for now, the Primera Espada simply fell asleep, with only the stars as his company.

The End

Now authors stuff!

I probably shouldn't have some kind of authors section at the end of my story or whatever, but meh. Thank you to everyone who followed my story and reviewed it. I wouldn't have kept with it had it not been for you guys. Much love everybody. Sorry I took so long to finish it.

But to answer some questions, the story takes place when everyone is training for the "winter war," so a little before Grimmjow vs. Ichigo round 2.

And a lot of people are all Starrk/Hallibel. I debated having him think about her and what not, but I really wanted to try and push his aspect of Loneliness, so I opted to leave out too much of an emotional romantic side to Starrk.

But yeah, thank you guys, and I hope you all enjoyed this little fanfic.


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